Chapter 18 - The Eighteenth Century: European States, International Wars, and Social Change

New Methods of Finance

A decline in the supply of gold and silver in the 17th century had created a chronic shortage of money. The establishment of new public and private banks and the acceptance of paper notes made possible an expansion of credit in the 18th century. Bank of England was founded in 1694 and made loans as well as receiving deposits and exchanging foreign currencies. In return for lending money to the government, the bank was allowed to issue paper "banknotes" backed by its credit. This soon became negotiable and provided a paper substitute for gold and silver coins. In addition, the issuance of government bonds paying regular interest created the notion of a public or "national debt" distinct from the monarch's personal debt. There were risks due to speculators that provided opportunities to invest in colonial trading companies. France saw a loss in confidence in paper money due to the bankruptcy of John Law's company and bank. Therefore, French public finance developed slowly in the 18th century. Despite crises, public confidence in Britain's new financial institutions enabled the British government to borrow large sums of money at low interest rates, giving it an advantage in the struggle with France. Despite Britain's growing importance in finance, the Dutch Republic remained the leader in Europe's financial life, and Amsterdam continued to be the center of international finance.

The Decline of the Dutch Republic

After its century in the sun, the Dutch Republic suffered a decline in economic prosperity. Both local and national political affairs were dominated by the oligarchies that governed the Dutch Republic's towns. In the 18th century, the oligarchs (regents) sought to reduce the power of the House of Orange. The regents became divided when the Dutch burghers who called themselves the Patriots (artisans, merchants, and shopkeepers) began to began to call for democratic reforms. The success of the Patriots led to foreign interference when the Prussian king sent troops to protect his sister. The Patriots were crushed and the old system was re-established.

The Italian States

After the Treaty of Utrecht, Austria replaced Spain as the dominant force here during the eighteenth century. The duchy of Milan, Sardinia, and the kingdom of Naples were all surrendered to the Habsburg emperors but Sicily was given to the northern Italian state of Savoy that was emerging as a state trying to expand. In 1734, the Bourbons of Spain reestablished control over Naples and Sicily. Some of the Italian states like Venice and Genoa remained independent but they all grew more impotent in international affairs.

The Atlantic Seaboard States

As a result of the overseas voyages of the 16th century, the European economic axis began to shift from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic seaboard. In the 17th century, the English and Dutch expanded as Spain and Portugal declined. By the 18th century, Dutch power declined, and it was left to the English and French to build the commercial empires that created a true global economy.

The New Consumer

As agricultural innovations in the 18th century reduced the need for agricultural workers, other occupations were expanding. This lead to a consumer revolution primarily centered in England. Consumers purchased new goods such as china, silverware, cut glass, mahogany furniture, teapots, and ready-made clothing. The consumer products of the 18th century quickly became international commodities.

The Mediterranean World

At the beginning of the 18th century, Spain experienced a change of dynasties from the Habsburg to the Bourbons. Under Philip V, the laws, administrative institutions and language of Castile were established in the other Spanish kingdom. French-style ministries replaced the old conciliar system of government, and officials similar to French intendants were introduced into the various Spanish provinces. Since the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713 had taken the Italian territories and the Netherlands away from Spain, the latter now had fewer administrative problems and less drain on its already over-taxed economic resources. In the second half of the 18th century, the Catholic Church was also brought under royal control when the king banished the Jesuits and restricted the activities of the Inquisition. The landed aristocracy continued to exercise substantial power throughout the 18th century.

Child Care

At the beginning of the 18th century, traditional attitudes prevailed in the care of children. Generally, lower class women breast-fed their own children because that provided the best nourishment. Lower class women also served as wet nurses for children of the aristocratic and upper middle classes. Mothers from these higher social strata considered breastfeeding undignified and hired wet nurses instead. In the second half of the 18th century, traditional attitudes began to alter. The impact of Enlightenment thought, such as Rousseau's Emile, and the increasing survival of more infants led to new attitudes toward children. Childhood came to be viewed as a distinct phase in human development. There was a shift to dressing children in comfortable clothing appropriate for their age rather than clothes modeled after adult styles. The practice of *primogeniture,* in which the eldest son received all of the largest share of the parent's estate and treated as the favorite also came under attack. Appeals for women to breast feed their children rather than use wet nurses followed. In England, toys and games for children now appeared. The jigsaw puzzle was invented and books such as *//Little Pretty Pocket-Book//* aimed to please as well as teach children. These changes were limited to the upper classes and did not extend to the peasants. Children were still a source of considerable anxiety. They were a health risk to the mother who bore them and more mouths to feed. In times of economic crisis, some families resorted to *infanticide* or abandoned their children at foundling homes. Severe problems arose when the foundling homes system became overburdened from too many people dropping off unwanted children. Foundling homes often proved fatal for infants. Mortality rates ranged from 50% - 90%.

The Peasants

Because society was still mostly rural in the 18th century, the peasantry constituted the largest social group, making up as much as 85% of Europe's population. The most important distinction between peasants from area to area was between the free peasant and the serf. Some peasants were legally free but some lived in poverty more desperate than that of many serfs. Small peasant proprietors or tenant farmers in Western Europe were also not free from compulsory services. Most owed tithes, often one-third of their crops. Although tithes were intended for parish priests, they wound up in the hands of towns and aristocratic landowners. Peasants also could owe a variety of dues and fees. Hunting rights, dues, fees, and tithes were all deeply resented. Eastern Europe continued to be dominated by large landed estates owned by powerful lords and worked by serfs. In the 16th & 17th centuries, peasants were bound to the lord's estate, had to perform labor services on the lord's land, and could not marry or move without permission and payment of a tax. By the 18th century, landlord possessed legal jurisdiction, giving them control over the administration of justice. Only in the Habsburg empire had a ruler attempted to improve the lot of the peasants through a series of reforms. With the exception of the clergy and a small merchant class, 18th century Russia, unlike the rest of Europe, was still a society of landlords and serfs. Russian peasants were not attached to the land but to the landlord and these existed a condition approaching slavery.

The French and Indian Wars

By far the greatest conflicts of the Seven Year's War took place in North America, where it was known as the French and Indian Wars. There were two primary areas of contention. One was the waterways of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, and the forts near the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain that protected French Quebec and French traders. The other was the unsettled Ohio River. As the French moved south from the Great Lakes and north along the Mississippi, they began to establish forts. To British settlers in the thirteen colonies to the east, this French activity threatened to cut off a vast area from British Expansion. The French found allies among the Indians, who considered the French traders less threatening than the British settlers. Despite initial French success, British fortunes were revived by William Pitt the Elder, who was convinced that it was necessary to destroy the French colonial empire in order to create Britain's own colonial empire. Pitt concentrated resources, especially the British navy, to the colonial war. The French had more troops but their ability to use them was contingent on naval support. The defeat of French fleets in major naval battles, gave the British an advantage. A series of British victories soon followed. The British went on to seize Montreal, the Great Lakes area, and the Ohio valley. The French were forced to make peace. By the Treaty of Paris, the French ceded Canada, and the lands east of the Mississippi to Britain. Their ally Spain transferred Spanish Florida to British control. By 1763, Great Britain had become the world's greatest colonial power.

France: The Problems of the French Monarchs

By the 18th century, France experienced an economic revival as the Enlightenment gained strength. The French monarchy, however, was not overly influenced by the philosophes and resisted reforms as the French aristocracy grew stronger. Louis XIV had left France with enlarged territories, an enormous debt, and unhappy populace, and a five-year-old great grandson as his successor. The governing of France fell into the hands of Cardinal Fluery, the kings minister. France pulled back from foreign adventures while commerce and trade expanded and the government promoted the growth of industry, especially in coal and textiles. The budget had even balanced for a while. When Fluery died, Louis XV decided to rule alone. Louis was lazy and week, so ministers and mistresses soon began to influence the king, control affairs of the state, and undermine the prestige of the monarchy. The loss of an empire in the Seven Years' War, accompanied by burdensome taxes, and ever mounting public debt, more hungry people, and a court life at Versailles that remained frivolous and carefree, forced even Louis to recognize the growing disgust with his monarchy. The new king, Louis XVI, knew little about the operations of the French government and lacked the energy to deal decisively with state affairs. His wife, Marie Antoinette, was a spoiled Austrian princess. As France's financial crisis worsened, neither Louis XVI nor his queen fathomed the depths of despair and discontent that led to the violent revolution.

The Nature of Warfare

Despite large armies and navies, there was not more destructive warfare in 18th century Europe. War was no longer driven by ideology as the religious conflicts of the 16th and 17th centuries had been. Since larger armies depended on increased tax revenues, rulers regarded the wanton destruction of civilian taxpayers as foolish. The costliness of 18th century armies as well as the technology and customary tactics created a system of warfare based on limited objectives. Since generals were reluctant to risk destruction of their armies in pitched battles, they came to rely on clever and elaborate maneuvers, rather than direct confrontation. A system of formalities accepted by all sides allowed defeated opponents to withdraw without being captured or destroyed. This mentality also encouraged the construction of vast fortresses to secure major roads and the enormous supples needed.

Conflict in Europe

Europe witnessed the clash of two major alliances: The British and Prussians against the Austrians, Russians, and French. With his superb army, Frederick the Great was able for some time to defeat the Austrian, French, and Russian armies. At the *Battle of Rossbach* in Saxony, Frederick was initially victorious over the French-Austrian forces but was eventually defeated by the French-Austrian-Russian forces attacking from three different directions. He was saved by the death of Tsarina Elizabeth of Russia, which brought her brother Peter III to power. A great admirer of Frederick, Peter withdrew the Russian troops from the conflict and Prussian lands that they occupied. The European conflict ended by the *Peace of Hubertusburg* in 1763. All occupied territories were returned, and Austria officially recognized Prussia's permanent control of Silesia.

Growth of the European Population

Europe's population began to grow around 1750 and experienced a slow but steady rise. The European growth rate in the second half of the century was double that of the first half. Individual states also experienced rapid growth between 1700 and 1790. These increases occurred during the same time that several million Europeans were going abroad as colonists. The most important cause of population growth was a decline in the death rate. The introduction of new crops from the Americas, such as corn and potatoes, played an important role in creating a more bountiful and nutritious food supply. Also of great importance to population growth was the end of the bubonic plague. In England, a decline in the number of women who remained unmarried during their childbearing years may have also played an important role. Diseases such as typhus, smallpox, influenza and dysentery were rampant, especially since hygienic conditions remained poor.

Marriage and Birth Rates

In most of Europe, newly married couples established their own households independent of their parents. Both men and women (outside the aristocracy) married quite late in order to save enough to establish their own households. Late marriages imposed limits on the birthrate; in fact, they might be considered a natural form of birth control. Married couples had the first child within one year of marriage, and produced an average of five children per family. The possibility of large population growth was somewhat offset because 40 - 60% of European women of childbearing age were not married. Moreover, by the end of the 18th century, birth control techniques, especially among the upper classes in France and Britain, were used to limit the number of children. The average number of children for French aristocrats declined significantly. Among the working classes, whether peasants or urban workers, the contribution of women and children to the "family economy" was crucial. In urban areas, both male and female children either helped in the handicraft manufacturing at home or were sent out to work as household servants. In rural ares, children worked on the land or helped in the activities of the cottage industry. Married women grew vegetables, tended livestock, and sold eggs, vegetables, and milk. Wives of propertyless agricultural workers labored in the fields or as textile workers. In the cities, wives of artisans helped their husbands at their crafts or worked as seamstresses. The wives of unskilled workers labored as laundresses and cleaners for the rich or peddled food or used clothing to the lower classes.

The Scandinavian States

In the 17th century, Sweden had become the dominant power in northern Europe, but after the Battle of Poltava in 1709, Swedish power declined rapidly. After the death of Charles XII, the Swedish nobility gained power. The division of the nobility into pro-French and pro-Russian factions allowed King Gustavus III to reassert the power of the monarchy. Gustavus was one of the most enlightened monarchs of his age. He established freedom of religion, speech, and press and eliminated torture. His economic reforms introduced Laissez-faire: he reduced tariffs, abolished tolls, and encouraged trade and agriculture. A group of nobles, angry at these reforms and their loss of power, killed the king, but were unable to fully restore the rule of the aristocracy.

The Seven Year's War

Maria Theresa refused to accept the loss of Silesia and began rebuilding her army, while working with her foreign minister, Count Wentzel von Kaunitz, to separate Prussia from its chief ally, France. The Bourbon-Habsburg rivalry had been part of European diplomacy since the late 16th century. New rivalries of Britain and France over colonial empires, and Austria and Prussia over Silesia had now formed. France abandoned Prussia and now allied with Austria and Russia. In turn, Great Britain now allied with Prussia. This diplomatic revolution of 1756 now led to another war, with three major areas of conflict: Europe, India, and North America. The Seven Year's War could be seen as the first world war.

The European States

Most European states in the 18th century were ruled by monarchs. Although the justifications of the previous century for strong monarch continued to hold sway, divine-right assumptions were gradually superseded by influential utilitarian arguments as Europe became increasingly secularized.

Cottage Industry

Most textiles were still produced by traditional methods. In cities, master artisans used timeworn methods to turn out finished good. By the 18th century, textile production shifted to the countryside where they were produced by the "putting-out" or "domestic" system. A merchant-capitalist bought the raw material, and "put them out" to rural workers. This system was known as the *cottage industry* because the spinners and weavers did the work in their own cottages. The cottage industry enabled rural people to earn incomes to supplement their small wages as agricultural laborers.

Enlightened Absolutism Revisited

Of the 3 major rulers traditionally associated with the enlightened absolutism--Joseph II, Frederick II, and Catherine the Great--only Joseph sought truly radical changes based on Enlightenment ideas. Both Frederick and Catherine like to be cast as disciples on the Enlightenment, expressed interest in enlightened reforms, and even attempted some, but neither ruler's policies were seriously affected by Enlightenment thought. Many felt all 3 ruler's policies were not that different from those of their predecessors. Heightened state power was used to amass armies and wage wars to gain more power. Nevertheless, in their desire to build strong state systems, these rulers did pursue such enlightened practices as legal reform, religious toleration, and the extension of education because that created more satisfied subjects. Military as well as political, and social realities limited the ability of enlightened rulers to make reform. The aristocracy still held the most power in society. Although aristocrats might join the populace in opposing monarchial extension of centralizing power, they were not going to support a political ideology of equal rights for all.

Absolutism in Central and Eastern Europe

Of the five major European states (Prussia, Austria, Russia, Britain and France), three were located in central and Eastern Europe and came to play an increasingly important role in European international politics.

The Aristocratic Way of Life: The Grand Tour

One important aspect of 18th century travel was the grand tour, in which the sons of aristocrats completed their education by making a tour of Europe's major cities. The English aristocracy in particular regarded the grand tour as crucial to their education. Travel was not easy in the 18th century. Crossing the English Channel could be difficult in rough seas, there was the danger of pirates, inns were populated with thieves and bedbugs. Since the trip was intended to be educational, young Englishmen were accompanied by a tutor who ensured that his charges spent time looking at museum collections.

The Destruction of Poland

Poland was an excellent example of why a strong monarchy was needed in early modern Europe. The Polish king was elected by the Polish nobles and forced to accept drastic restrictions on his power, including limited revenues, a small bureaucracy, and a stand arming of no more than 20,000 soldiers. The total destruction of the Polish state in the 18th century resulted from the rivalries of its three neighbors--Austria, Russia and Prussia. To avoid war, the leaders of these powers decided to compensate themselves by dividing Poland. In 1772, Poland lost about 30% of its land and 50% of its population. Austria gained the agriculturally rich district of Galicia, Russia too the largest slice of eastern Poland and Prussia acquired West Prussia, the smallest but most valuable territory because it united two of the chief sections of Prussia. The remaining Polish state was supposedly independent but it was dominated by Russians who even kept troops on Polish territory. Russia and Prussia undertook a second portion of the Polish territory in 1793. The remaining Polish state was obliterated by Austria, Prussia, and Russia in the third partition of Poland. Poland's demise is an example of why building a strong, absolutist state was essential to survival in the 17th and 18th centuries.

Portugal

Portugal had experienced decline since its glory days in the 16th century. Under the ministry of marquis de Pombal, the nobility and Catholic Church were curtailed and the Portuguese Empire temporarily revived. After Pombal was removed from office, the nobility and church regained much of their power.

The Problem of Poverty

Poverty was a highly visible problem in the 18th century, both in cities and in the countryside. Beggars were common in many cities. Prostitution was often an alternative to begging. Many people depended on charity or begging for their food. Earlier in Europe, it was viewed that assisting poor people was a Christian duty. A change in attitude that began in the latter part of 16th century became more apparent in the 18th century. Charity to poor beggars simply encouraged their idleness and led them to vice and crime. The problem of poverty remained another serious blemish on the quality of 18th century life.

Was There an Agricultural Revolution

Some historians have noted the beginning of agrarian changes in the 17th century. Others feel that significant changes only occurred in England. 18th century agriculture was characterized by increases in food product that can be attributed to four interrelated factors: more farmland, increased crop yields per acre, healthier and more abundant livestock, and an improved climate. The amount of land under cultivation was increased by abandoning the old open-field system, in which part of the land lie fallow to renew it. The formerly empty fields were now planted with new crops and provided winter food for livestock, allowing landlords to maintain a larger number of animals. More livestock increased the amount of meat in European diets and enhanced food production by making more animal manure available to fertilize fields and increase yields per acre. Landed aristocrats adopted innovations to increase yields. *Jethro Tull* discovered using a hoe to keep the soil loose allowed air and moisture to reach plants and improved growth. He also used a drill to plant seeds in rows instead of scattering them by hand. The 18th century had greater yields of vegetables, including two American crops, the potatoes and maize (Indian corn). The potato took little effort to produce in quantity and was high in carbohydrates and calories, and could be easily stored for winter use. The new agricultural techniques were best suited for large-scale farms, therefore, a change in land-holding accompanied the increase in food production. Large landowners enclosed the old open fields, combining small holdings into larger units. The end of the open-field system led to the demise of cooperative farming of the village community. England's parliament, dominated by landed aristocracy, enacted legislation allowing lands to be legally enclosed. As a result of these *enclosure acts,* England became a land of large estates, and many small farmers were forced to become wage laborers or tenant farmers. The enclosure movement and new agricultural practices largely destroyed the traditional patterns of English village life. In the 18th century, the English were the leaders in adopting the new techniques behind the agricultural revolution. The early modernization of English agriculture, with its noticeable increase in productivity, made possible the feeding of an expanding population. In other parts of Europe, noble privileges and heavy taxes on the peasants prevented the adoption of new agricultural practice. Nobles maintained rights of usage to all lands and often pastured animals on fallow fields; although the animals manure could fertilize the soil, overgrazing could destroy the fields. In addition, lords levied taxes on certain crops which prevented the introduction of crops for feed.

The Aristocratic Way of Life: The Country House

The 18th century was the final century of "sweetness" before the Industrial Revolution and bourgeois society diminished their privileged way of life. The court of Louis XIV had encouraged a court society as a center of culture. This court society was a lifestyle of participation in intrigues for the king's or prince's favor, serene walks in formal gardens, and duels to maintain one's honor. The majority of aristocratic landowners, however, remained on their country estates and did not participate in court society. English landed aristocrats invested much time, energy and money in their rural estates, giving the English country house an important role in English social life. Many country houses were built in Georgian style, combining elegance with domesticity, and its interior was often described as offering visual delight and utility along with the comfort of a home. The country house also fulfilled a new desire for greater privacy that was reflected in the separation of lower and upper floors. The lower floors were devoted to public activities and the upper floors consisted of bedrooms. The 18th century desire for privacy also meant keeping servants at a distance. They were now housed in their own wing of rooms and altered to their employer's desire for assistance by a new innovation--long cords connected to bells in the servant's quarters. Although the arrangement of the 18th century Georgian house originally reflect male interests, the influence of women was increasingly evident by the second half of the century. Aristocratic landowners also sought to expand the open space around their country houses to separate themselves from the lower classes in the villages and to remove farmland from their view. Often these open spaces were enclosed by walls to create parks (as they were called) to provide more privacy.

The Austrian Empire of the Habsburgs

The Austrian Empire had become one of the great European states by the beginning of the 18th century. The city of Vienna, center the Habsburg monarchy, was filled with magnificent palaces and churches and became the music capital of Europe. A sprawling empire composed of many different nationalities, languages, religions, and cultures, Austria found it difficult to provide common laws and a centralized administration for its people. Empress Maria Theresa resolved to reform her empire. She curtailed the role of the diets or provincial assemblies in taxation and local administration. Clergy and nobles were forced to pay property and income taxes to royal officials rather than the diets. The Austrian and Bohemian lands were divided into ten provinces and subdivided into districts, all administered by royal officials rather than representatives of the diets, making part of the Austrian Empire more centralized and more bureaucratic. Maria Theresa remained staunchly Catholic and conservative and was not open to the philosophes calls for wider reforms but her successor was. Joseph II was determined to make changes; at the same time, he carried his mother's chief goal of enhancing Habsburg power within the monarch and Europe. He abolished serfdom and tried to give the peasants hereditary rights to their holdings. He instituted a new penal code that eliminated the death penalty and established the principle of equality of all before the law. Joseph introduced drastic religious reforms, as well, including complete religious toleration and restrictions on the Catholic Church. Joseph's reform programs proved overwhelming for Austria. He alienated the nobility by freeing the serfs and alienated the church by his attacks on the monastic establishment. Even the peasants were unhappy, unable to understand the drastic changes. His imposition of German as the official bureaucratic language alienated the non-German nationalities. His successors undid many of his reform efforts.

War in India

The Great War for Empire, was fought in India and North America, by the British and French. By the *Treaty of Paris* in 1763, the French withdrew and left India to the British.

Composition of Armies

The composition of these armies reflected the hierarchical structure of European society and the great chasm that separated the upper and lower classes. Officers came primarily from the landed aristocracy. Middle-class individuals could enter the middle ranks of the officer corps but were largely kept out of the higher ranks. Rank-and-file soldiers came mostly from the lower class. Prussia and Russia required able-bodied peasants to be in the army by law. But many states realized they could not afford to waste their farmers. For that reason, 18th century armies were partly composed of foreign troops, many from Switzerland or the petty German states. Britain alone had no standing army and relied on mercenaries. Most troops in European armies were natives who enlisted voluntarily for six-year terms. Most came from the lower classes--peasants and artisans from the cities--who saw the military as an opportunity to escape from hard times. Britain and the Dutch Republic regarded navies as more important than armies. In the second half of the 18th century, the British possessed 174 warships manned by 80,000 sailors. Conditions on these ships was poor with diseases such as scurvy and yellow fever running rampant.

New. Methods and New Machines

The cottage system spread to many areas of rural Europe in the 18th century. But, significant changes in industrial production began to occur in the second half of the century. Importation of raw cotton from slave plantations in the Americas encouraged the production of cotton cloth in Europe, where a market developed because of the growing demand for lightweight cotton clothes that were less expensive than linens and woolens. The cottage industry could not keep up with the growing demand, leading English cloth entrepreneurs to develop new methods and new machines. The flying shuttle sped up the process of weaving on a loom, thereby increasing the need for large quantities of yarn. In response, Richard Arkwright invented a "water frame," powered by horse or water, which turned out yarn much faster than cottage spinning wheels. The abundance of yarn led to the development of mechanized looms. By the end of the 18th century, rural workers, perceiving that the new machines threatened their traditional livelihood, had begun to call for the machines' destruction.

Economic Expansion and Social Change

The depressed conditions of the 17th century began to improve in the early 18th century. Rapid population growth, expansion in banking and trade, an agricultural revolution (in Britain), the beginnings of industrialization, and an increase in worldwide trade and consumption characterized the economic patterns of the 18th century.

The Peasant Diet

The diet of the peasants in the 18th century had not changed much since the Middle Ages. Dark bread remained the basic staple. Peasants drank water, wine, and beer and ate soups and gruel made of grains and vegetables. The new foods of the 18th century, potatoes and American corn, added important elements to the peasant diet. When harvests were bad, hunger and famine became the peasants lot in life, making them even more susceptible to the ravages of disease.

Family, Marriage, and Birthrate Patterns

The family, rather than the individual, was still at the heart of Europe's social organization. People still thought of the family in traditional terms, as a patriarchal institution with the husband dominating his wife and children. In all social classes, parents, especially the fathers, still generally selected marriage patterns for their children based on the interests of the family.

Mercantile Empires and Worldwide Trade

The growth of commercial capitalism led to integrated markets, joint-stock trading companies, and banking and stock exchanges. Mercantilist theory had put in place that a nation should acquire as much gold and silver as possible, maintain a favorable trade balance, provide subsidies to manufacturers, build roads and canals, etc. Colonies were seen as valuable sources of raw materials and markets for finished goods. With the development of colonies and trading posts in the Americas, Asia, and Africa, Europeans engaged in international commerce. This increase in overseas trade led to the emergence of a truly global economy in the 18th century. Although trade within Europe still dominated, overseas trade boomed in the 18th century. The African slave trade and the plantation economy in the Americas that depended on it were an integral part of a new Atlantic economy. During the 18th century, trade between European states and their colonies increased from 19% to 34%. The growing trade also led to the expansion of merchant fleets. Flourishing trade had a significant impact on the European economy, especially the growth of towns and cities. Trade also led to the growth of related industries, such as textile manufacturing, sugar refining, and tobacco processing and an increase in dock workers, building tradesmen, and servants.

The Village

The local village remained the center of social life for the peasants. The villages were often dominated by the wealthiest peasants and proved highly resistant to innovations, such as new agricultural practices.

European Industry

The most important product of European industry in the 18th century was textiles. Woolen cloth made up 75% of Britain's exports.

The Nobility

The nobles, who constituted only 2 to 3 percent of the European population, played a dominate role in society. Being born a noble automatically guaranteed a place at the top of the social order. The legal privileges of the nobility included judgement by their peers, immunity from severe punishment, and exemption from many forms of taxation. Especially in central and Eastern Europe, the rights of landlords over their serfs were overwhelming. Nobles were expected to live off the yields of their estates but many were also eager to profit from the exploitation of raw materials found on their estates. As a result, many nobles were involved in industries such as mining, metallurgy, and glassmaking. Aristocrats consumed enormous quantities of meat and fish accompanied by cheeses, nuts, and a variety of sweets. Nobles also played important roles in military and government affairs. Since medieval times, landed aristocrats had served as military officers. Although monarchs found it impossible to exclude commoners from the ranks of officers, tradition maintained that nobles made the most natural and best officers. The 18th century nobility played a significant role in the administrative machinery of state. In most of Europe, landholding nobles controlled much of the local government in their districts. The nobility or landowning class was not a homogeneous social group. Landlords in England leased their land to tenant farmers, while those in Eastern Europe used the labor services of serfs. Differences in wealth, education, and political power also led to differences within countries as well. The gap between rich and poor nobles could be enormous. As the century progressed, poor nobles sank into the ranks of the unprivileged masses. The nobility declined by 1/3. Although the nobles clung to their privilege status and struggled to keep others out, almost everywhere a person with money could enter the ranks of the nobility. Rights of nobility were frequently attached to certain lands, so purchasing the lands made one a noble, the acquisition of government offices also often conferred noble status.

The Social Order of the 18th Century

The pattern of Europe's social organization established in the Middle Ages, continued into the 18th century. Social status was determined not by wealth or economic standing but by the division into the traditional "orders" or "estates" determined by hereditary. This division of society into traditional orders was supported by Christian teaching, which emphasized the need to fulfill the responsibilities of one's estate. Although Enlightenment intellectuals attacked these traditional distinctions, they did not die easily. Different social groups remained easily distinguishable in Europe by the distinctive, traditional clothes they wore.

Wars and Diplomacy

The philosophes condemned war as a foolish waste of life and resources in stupid quarrels of no value to humankind. By the 18th century, the European system of self-governing, individual sates was grounded largely in the principle of self-interest. The 18th century concept of *balance of power* was predicated on how to counterbalance the power of one state by another to prevent any one state from dominating another. This balance of power did not imply a desire for peace. The diplomacy of the 18th century primarily still focused on dynastic interests, or the desire of ruling families to provide for their dependents and extend their dynastic holdings. But the 18th century also saw the emergence of the concept of *reason of state,* on the basis of which a ruler looked beyond dynastic interests to the long-term future of their state. International rivalry and the continuing centralization of the European states were closely related. The need for money to support new standing armies, navies, and weapons of war that originated in the 17th century created the need for more efficient and effective control of bureaucratic power to collect taxes and organize states to win wars. At the same time, the development of large standing armies ensured that political disputes would periodically be resolved by armed conflicts rather than diplomacy.

European Armies and Warfare

The professional standing army, initiated in the 17th century, became a standard feature of 18th century Europe. Especially noticeable was the increase in the size of armies which paralleled the development of absolute states.

Russia Under Catherine the Great

The six successors to Peter the Great all fell under the thumb of the palace guard. The last of these, Peter III, whose wife was German, won the favor of the guard. When Peter was killed by a faction of nobles, Catherine II the Great emerged as autocrat of all Russia. Catherine was familiar with the works of the philosophes. She claimed that she wished to reform Russia along the lines of Enlightenment ideas but she was shrewd enough to realize that her success depended on the support of the palace guard and the gentry class from which it stemmed. Initially, Catherine seemed eager to pursue reform. She called for an assembly to debate the details of a new law code. In her *//Instruction//* written as a guide to the deliberations Catherine questioned the institutions of serfdom, torture, and capital punishment and even advocated the principle of equality of all people in the eyes of the law. But a year and a half of negotiations produced little real change. In fact, Catherine's subsequent policies had the effect of strengthening the landholding class at the expense of all others, especially the Russian serfs. To reorganize local government, Catherine divided Russia into 50 provinces, each of which was subdivided into districts ruled by officials chosen by the nobles. In this way, the local nobility became responsible for the day-to-day governing of Russia. The *Charter of the Nobility* formalized the gentry's rights to special legal privileges, including the right to trial by peers and exemption from personal taxation and corporal punishment. Catherine's policy of favoring the landed nobility led to even worse conditions for the Russian peasantry. The government's attempts to enforce restrictions on free peasants in the border districts of the Russian Empire soon led to a full-scale revolt. It was intensified by the support of the Cossacks, independent tribes of fierce warriors who had fought for the Russians against the Turks but now resisted the government's attempts to absorb them into the empire. An illiterate Cossack, *Emelyan Pugachev,* succeeded in turning discontent into a mass revolt. Initially successful, Pugacheve won the support of many peasants when he issued a manifesto freeing all peasants from oppressive taxes and military service. Encouraged by Pugacheve to seize their landlords' estates, the peasants responded by killing more than 1,500 estate owners and their families. The rebellions soon faltered. Betrayed by his own subordinates, Pugacheve was captured, tortured, and executed. The rebellion collapsed completely and Catherine responded with even greater repression of the peasantry. All rural reform was halted and serfdom was expanded into newer parts of the empire. Catherine expanded Russian territory westward into Poland and southward to the Black Sea by defeating the Ottoman Turks. In the *Treaty of Kuchnuk-Kainarji*, the Russians gained some land and the privilege of protecting Greek Orthodox Christians in the Ottoman Empire. Russian expansion westward occurred at the expense of neighboring Poland.

Great Britain: King and Parliament

The success of the Glorious Revolution in England had prevented absolutism without clearly inaugurating constitutional monarchy. The 18th century British political system was characterized by a sharing of power between king and Parliament. The king chose ministers responsible to himself who set policy and guided Parliament; Parliament had the power to make laws, levy taxes, pass the budget, and indirectly influence the king's ministers. 18th century British Parliament was dominated by two groups of the landed aristocracy. The peers, who sat for life in the House of Lords and the landed gentry, who sat in the House of Commons. These two groups were both landowners with similar economic interests and they frequently intermarried. The deputies in the House of Commons were chosen from the boroughs and counties, but not by popular voting. This allowed the landed aristocrats to gain support through bribery which resulted in members of the leading landed gentry families being elected over and over again. When the last Stuart ruler, Queen Anne, died without an heir, the crown was offered to the Protestant rulers of the German state of Hanover. Because the Hanoverian kings, George I and George II had no familiarity with the British system, their chief ministers were allowed to handle parliament. Robert Walpole, prime minister from 1721 to 1742, pursued a peaceful foreign policy to avoid new land taxes. Growing trade and industry led an increasing middle class to favor expansion. William Pitt the Elder became prime minister in 1757 and furthered ambitions for expansion of trade and empire by acquiring Canada and India in the Seven Year's War. Despite his successes, the king replaced Pitt in 1761 with Lord Bute. William Pitt the Younger was appointed in 1783. Supported by the merchants, industrial classes, and the king, Pitt managed to stay in power. Thanks to Pitt's successes, serious reform of the corrupt parliamentary system was avoided for another generation.

Enlightened Absolutism

There is no doubt the Enlightenment thought had some impact on the political development of European states in the 18th century. Closely related to the Enlightenment idea of *natural laws* was the belief in *natural rights,* which were thought to be inalterable privileges that should not be withheld from any person. These natural rights included equality before the law, freedom of religious worship, freedom of speech and press, and the right to assemble, hold property, and seek happiness. The American Declaration of Independence summarized the Enlightenment concept of natural rights in "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. The philosophes believed that most people needed the direction of an enlightened ruler to establish these natural rights. An enlightened ruler was one who allowed religious toleration, freedom of speech and press, and the right to hold private property. They must foster the arts, sciences, and education. Above all, their rule must not be arbitrary; they must obey the laws and enforce them fairly for all subjects. Distrustful of the masses, the philosophes believed that absolute rulers, swayed by enlightened principles, were the best hope of reforming their societies. Many historians once asserted that a new type of monarchy emerge in the late 18th century, which they call *enlightened absolutism.* Monarchs such as Frederick II of Prussia, Catherine the Great of Russia, and Joseph II of Austria supposedly followed the advise of the philosophes and ruled by enlightened principles.

The Inhabitants of Towns and Cities

Townspeople were still a distinct minority of the total population, except in the Dutch Republic, Britain and parts of Italy. Although urban dwellers were vastly outnumbered by rural inhabitants, towns played an important role in Western culture. The contrast between a large city, with its education, culture, and material consumption, and the surrounding, often poverty-stricken countryside were striking. Peasants often resented the prosperity of towns and their exploitation of the countryside to serve urban interests. Towns lived off the countryside not by buying peasant produce but by acquiring it through tithes, rents, and dues. Many cities had a long tradition of patrician oligarchies that continued to control their communities by dominating town and city councils. Just below the patricians stood an upper crust of the middle classes: non noble office holders, financiers and bankers, merchants, wealthy rentiers who lived off their investments, and important professionals. Another large urban group was the petty bourgeoisie or lower middle class, made up of master artisans shopkeepers, and small traders. Below them were laborers or the working classes. Much urban industry was carried on in small guild workshops by masters, journeymen, and apprentices. Increasingly in the 18th century, guilds became closed oligarchies as membership was restricted to the relatives of masters. Many skilled artisans were then forced to become low-paid workers. Urban communities also had a large group of unskilled workers who served as servants, maids, and cooks at pitifully low wages. Despite an end to the plague, 18th century cities still experienced high death rates, especially among children, due to unsanitary living conditions, polluted water and a lack of sewage facilities. Overcrowding also exacerbated urban problems as cities continued to grow from an influx of rural immigrants, few of whom found employment opportunities. The result was a serious problem of poverty in the 18th century.

Prussia: The Army and Bureaucracy

Two able Prussian kings in the 18th century, Frederick William I and Frederick II, further developed the two major institutions--the army and the bureaucracy--that are the backbones of Prussia. Frederick William I promoted the evolution of Prussia's highly efficient civil bureaucracy, the General Directory. It served as the chief administrative agent of the central government, supervising military, police, economic, and financial affairs. Frederick William strove to maintain a highly efficient bureaucracy of civil service workers. It had its own code, in which the supreme values were obedience, honor, and service to the king as the highest duty. Under William I, the rigid class stratification that had emerged in the 17th century Brandenburg-Prussia persisted. The nobility or landed aristocracy knows as the Junkers still played a dominating role in the Prussian state. The Junkers held complete monopoly over the officer corps of the Prussian army which continued to grow. By using nobles as officers, Frederick William ensured a close bond between the nobility to the absolute monarch. The Junker nobility became imbued with a sense of service to the king or state. Because of its size and reputation as one of the best armies in Europe, the Prussian army was the most important institution in the state. "Prussian militarism* became synonymous with the extreme exaltation of military virtues: duty, obedience, sacrifice. The remaining classes in Prussia were considerably less important than the nobility. The peasants were born on their lord's estates and had few real rights and even needed permission to marry. For the middle class, the only opportunity for any social prestige was in the Prussian civil service. Frederick William allowed and even encouraged men of non-noble birth to serve in important administrative posts. Frederick II, known as the Great, was well versed in Enlightenment thought and even invited Voltaire to live at his court for several years. A believer in the king as the *first servant of the state,* Frederick the Great became a conscientious ruler who made few innovations in the administration of the state. His diligence in overseeing its operation, however, made the Prussian bureaucracy famous for both efficiency and its honesty. For a time, Frederick seemed willing to follow the philosophers recommendations for reform. He established a single code of laws for his territories that eliminated torture except in treason and murder cases. He granted limited freedom of speech and press as well as complete religious toleration. Although aware of the philosophers condemnation of serfdom, Frederick was too dependent on the Prussian nobility to interfere with it or the hierarchical structure of Prussian society. In fact, Frederick was a social conservative who made Prussian society even more aristocratic than it had been before. Frederick reversed his father's policy of allowing commoners to rise to power in the civil service and reserved the higher positions in bureaucracy for members of the nobility. Frederick the Great took a great interest in military affairs and enlarged the Prussian army. Unlike his predecessors, he had no objection to using it. Prussia became embroiled in two major wars, the War of the Austrian Succession and the Seven Year's War. By the end of his reign, Prussia was recognized as a great European power.

The War of the Austrian Succession (1740 - 1748)

Unable to produce a male heir to the Austrian throne, the Habsburg emperor Charles VI feared the succession of his daughter, Maria Theresa. He spent much of his reign negotiating the *Pragmatic Sanction,* where various European powers agreed to recognize his daughter as his legal heir. After Charles' death, the Pragmatic Sanction was disregarded, especially by Frederick II of Prussia, who took advantage of the new empress by invading Austrian Silesia. France entered the war against Austria and Maria Theresa made an alliance with Great Britain who feared French dominance. The war was not only fought in Europe, where Prussia seized Silesia and France occupied the Austrian Netherlands, but in the East, where France took Madras in India from the British, and in North America, where the British captured the French fortress of Louisbourg. The peace treaty of *Aix-la-Chapelle* in 1748 was the end of the war and promised the return of all occupied territories except Silesia to their original owners. Prussia refusal to return Silesia guaranteed another war between Prussia and Austria.